Easter Bunny

We were running out of time to get our picture taken with the big rabbit himself. We decided that Thursday morning would be a good day for it, hopefully not too crowded. We got there 15 minutes before it opened so that we could go potty and get shirts tucked, hair combed, and barrettes put in. It would have been great BUT the Easter Bunny was late! He(who I now know is actually a she), was running late and did not show up for another 30 minutes(45 since we had gotten there!). Let me tell you, I'm thinking that Easter Bunny learned his(her) lesson!!!! The kids did really well actually, but others in line did not! We have been visiting the Easter bunny every Monday for over a month, in hopes that the girls would be okay once the time came for pictures. I wasn't at all worried about Josh, thanks to Uncle Jay, he thinks all things bunny are great! The girls rushed in to shake hands, just like every other time. I got the boys positioned and picked up Sarah to place her on the bunny's lap. NOPE, NOT gonna happen! Crazy girl! She started screaming and clutching me like I was handing her to a serial killer. Which made Abby start! So, I quickly rearranged everyone in hopes we could get a picture with at least 5 kids in it! Poor Sam had the job of trying to hold Sarah, so he is just peeking out from behind her, while she is trying to stay as far away from the giant small child eating rabbit as she could. They let her hold a plastic flower and that did the trick, at least long enough to get a few pictures! So fun....

Before we left for the mall, I thought we'd get some pretty pictures of them all dressed up.
Since it was raining outside(shock, I know!), the couch was the only dry option!

Not sure if they should be happy about this
(notice Josh's arms around "his" girls!)

Sam, ever the helper and peacemaker, tries to get everyone smiling

They all join in

Really getting into it!

Look at Sarah, being the little lady, all prim and proper ;)

Look how scared my girls look!

THE one. Look how far the girls are from the bunny!
Not too bad at all!

Serious.Life magazine is out again!

I am still catching up on my marathon blogging this week, but I wanted to let you all know that the April edition of Serious.Life magazine is out! There are great articles this month! Go check it out(and look for Michael and Sam as you read through!).

easter story cookies

Easter Story Cookies

Make these the evening before Easter

1c. Whole Pecans
1 tsp. Vinegar
1c. Sugar
Zipper Baggie
3 Egg Whites
Tape
Wooden Spoon
Pinch Salt
Bible

Preheat oven to 300° (Important!)

Place pecans in zipper baggie and let children beat them with the
wooden spoon to break into small pieces. Explain that after Jesus was
arrested He was beaten by the Roman soldiers. (John 19:1-3.)

Let each child smell the vinegar. Put 1 tsp. vinegar into mixing bowl.
Explain that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross he was given vinegar
to drink. (John 19:28-30.)

Add egg whites to vinegar. Eggs represent life. Explain that Jesus
gave His life to give us life. (John 10:10-11.)

Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand. Let them taste it and
brush the rest into the bowl. Explain that this represents the salty
tears shed by Jesus' followers, and the bitterness of our own sin.
(Luke 23:27.)

Add 1c. sugar. Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that
Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him.
(Ps. 34:8 and John 3:16.)

Beat with a mixer for 12-15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed.
Explain that the white represents the purity in God's eyes of those
whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus. (Isa. 1:18 and John 3:1-3.)

Fold in broken nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto wax paper covered cookie
sheet. Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus'
body was laid. (Matt. 27:57-60.)

Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven
OFF. Give each child a piece of tape and seal the oven door. Explain
that Jesus' tomb was sealed. (Matt. 27:65-66.)

GO TO BED! Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the
oven overnight. Jesus' followers were in despair when the tomb was
sealed. (John 16:20 and 22.)

On Easter morning, open the oven and give everyone a cookie. Notice
the cracked surface and take a bite. The cookies are hollow! On the
first Easter Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and
empty. (Matt. 28:1-9.)

We are planning on doing these tomorrow, thought I'd post in case you want to as well. I love to do things that focus our attention on what Easter is all about. My friend, Tara, sent me this recipe and I tought it was a great way to have fun with and teach my boys about Easter in a tangible way!

Me- according to Michael

1. What is something mom always says to you?
-that she loves me

2. What makes mom happy?
-that I help her clean up

3. What makes mom sad?
-when I have a bad attitude

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
-by telling silly jokes

5. What was your mom like as a child?
-like me, only a girl

6. How old is your mom?
-29

7. How tall is your mom?
-bigger than me

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
-take naps

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
-she's sad

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
-a rockstar

11. What is your mom really good at?
-writing on the computer

12. What is your mom not very good at?
-checkers

13. What does your mom do for her job?
-cook

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
-spaghetti

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
-when she hugs me and kisses me

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
-word girl

17. What do you and your mom do together?
-go places

18. How are you and your mom the same?
-we both like to cook

19. How are you and your mom different?
-I get ear infections and she doesn't

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
-she tells me

21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
-the zoo

Me- according to Sam

1. What is something mom always says to you?
-No being mean

2. What makes mom happy?
-all of the kids

3. What makes mom sad?
-when your kids do bad things

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
-making funny faces

5. What was your mom like as a child?
-you were very very happy

6. How old is your mom?
-maybe like 20

7. How tall is your mom?
-I think 10 feet(as tall as Panda climbed to get the cookies)

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
-go to bed

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
-be sad

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
-for saving the day(think spiderman!)

11. What is your mom really good at?
-art

12. What is your mom not very good at?
-basketball

13. What does your mom do for her job?
-take care of your kids

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
-chicken

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
-because you take care of me

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
-the chipmunks

17. What do you and your mom do together?
-read stories

18. How are you and your mom the same?
-we both love eachother

19. How are you and your mom different?
-you came out of Granny's tummy and I came out of yours

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
-because you are very very nice

21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
-to the store

Eater eggs and bunnies

When it rains, it pours around here! I was only gonna post once today and then catch up little by little, but I'm afraid I won't sleep for managing my blog inside my head, picking pictures and captions that I won't remember in the morning. So, I'm doing a marathon night so that it is done and I'm caught up. Before I go on, though, I just heard that my Grandma has been evacuated from her home in Choctaw, OK due to the raging fires only miles from her home and moving that direction. PLEASE pray for her house to be saved, but even more importantly, I am praying that God will be really real to her right now, that she will physically feel the comfort that He can bring. That she, herself, will be saved and allow the peace that God can bring to penetrate her fully.


We went to a friends house to dye Easter eggs yesterday. We had a blast, but let me tell you, I left with a bunch of colorful eggs and children! To be completely honest, I was pretty colorful myself! I was wishing I had gotten the Easter pictures BEFORE we dyed Easter eggs. After they dyed them, we had a mini egg hunt and played outside. We had a great time with our friends! Before we left their house, I moved the seats in the van so that the girls can no longer reach each other. They are driving me CRAZY in the car, taking things from each other and clobbering each other for the sheer joy of it. No more of that!

Abby getting the painting thing down!

Josh is showing me his first egg: note, it needs to stay in the dye longer than .5 seconds to really change color!

Michael, Matthew, and Sam working hard

Little Michael thought it might be good...he was wrong(but isn't he cute!?!)

Sam is very colorful

Egg, egg, where are you?

Forget the eggs, this is more fun!

Sarah, my little jumping bean

Little Michael laughs when Sarah falls down(on purpose). I could just eat those cheeks up!

Sam and Matthew buzzing by in the jeep!

Not sure if Michael should feel protected or scared as my little ones circle around!

Abby girl

Who will be the King of the castle?!

I'm still not completely caught up, but that is all for now! Please, please keep my Grandma in your prayers, along with all the others who are and fear losing everything tonight.

Slackin' some more!

I'm back...well, I never really left, but you know what I mean, right?! We had another beautiful day after I blogged last! I filled up the water table and the kids went wild!

Sarah and Abby, playing nicely at the water table!

Sweet girls

Then the boys join them, and well, you see what happens

They go a bit nuts

Sarah is looking to see if they will be getting in trouble

We enjoyed the sun and HOT to the fullest. The girls got their finger and toe nails painted for the first time. It was a bribe to let me cut their nails...and it worked. I've never seen Sarah sit so still! She loved it! So much, that when I was painting Abby's, Sarah decided if a little is good, a lot is even better! She painted her whole foot! Love that girl.

Pretty fingers

Pretty toes

want a grape?